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Build iTunes Store packages

Build iTunes Store packages

There are a number of steps required to successfully create, configure, and build an iTunes Store package. Before you begin, make sure you have all the components you need, including video files, audio files, subtitles, preview video clips, and so on, and that each component is in the correct format for inclusion in the package.

Create an iTunes Store package

From the File menu, choose New iTunes Store Package.

An iTunes Store Package job appears in the batch area. (The batch area can contain only one iTunes Store Package job at a time.)

To add the primary video of your submission, click the Add Feature button , select a video file from the dialog that appears, then click Open.

An output row containing the selected video file is added to the job.

To add supplemental files, click the Add button on the right side of the Subtitles row, Closed Captions row, or Alternative Audio row, then select a file from the dialog that appears.

Important: Subtitle files must have the .itt extension, and closed-caption files must have the .scc extension.

You can add multiple files in each category (for example, to include subtitles or closed captions for multiple languages). Shift-click or Command-click to select multiple files.

Click Open.

An output row is created for each supplemental file you add.

To add a short preview video, click the Add Preview button , select a video file from the file dialog that appears, then click Open.

An output row containing the selected video file is added to the job.

Configure an iTunes Store package

After you create an iTunes Store package and add media, you need to add identifying production data in the Inspector.

In the batch area, click the top bar of the iTunes Store Package item.

The iTunes Store Package inspector appears. (If the inspector is not visible, click the Inspector button in the upper-right corner of the Compressor window.)

In the iTunes Store Package inspector, enter a name for the project in the Name field.

Note: This name will be used only to represent the job in the Active or Completed tabs within Compressor.

In the Package Properties section of the inspector, enter a short name that corresponds to the party who will ultimately submit the package to the iTunes Store.

The short name is generated and supplied by the iTunes Store and is used for internal identification. If you do not have an account with an assigned short name, enter placeholder text here, and your delivery partner will add the correct information to the package before submitting it to the iTunes Store.

Enter a Vendor ID.

The Vendor ID is a unique identifier for the movie you are submitting to the iTunes Store. This ID is used for tracking your assets and sales reporting.

If you do not know your vendor ID, you can enter any placeholder text here and your delivery partner add a valid vendor ID to the package before submission to the iTunes Store.

Important: The vendor ID can contain only alphanumeric characters and underscore marks; it cannot contain spaces, dashes, ampersands, other punctuation, or symbols. The vendor identifier is case-sensitive and must not start with an underscore. If a Vendor ID is numeric, it’s treated as a string, not numbers (for example, a vendor identifier of 000000000123456 is not the same as 123456). Vendor IDs must be at least six ASCII characters in length but not longer than 100 ASCII characters.

Click Choose, then select the location on your computer where you want to save the package.

Important: The iTunes Store requires specific video and audio settings in your package submission. Therefore, it’s not advisable to make changes to the Video and Audio inspectors for the Feature or Preview items in your iTunes Store Package job.

Configure subtitles, closed captions, and alternative audio tracks

After you add a job containing subtitle files, closed-caption files, or alternative audio tracks, you must configure those elements to ensure that they’re labeled with the correct language and other settings.

In the batch area, select a subtitle output row.

The Subtitles inspector appears. (If the inspector is not visible, click the Inspector button in the upper-right corner of the Compressor window.)

In the Subtitles inspector, choose options from the Language pop-up menu, the Country pop-up menu, and the Purpose pop-up menu.

Tip: You must choose a language before you can choose a country.

There are three available options in the Purpose pop-up menu:

Subtitles: Outputs a full translation of all words spoken in the film using the language of the intended territory. The subtitle text can be turned on or off by the viewer (as opposed to burned-in subtitles).

SDH (Subtitles for deaf and hard of hearing): Outputs a full translation of all the words spoken in the film, as well as song lyrics and sound effects (owl hooting, scream in distance, and so on). SDH can be turned on or off by the viewer.

Forced Subtitles: Outputs text that appears on the screen when an actor in a film is speaking in a language other than the language heard on the audio. Forced subtitles are delivered as a separate .itt file. Forced subtitles cannot be turned off as they are necessary to understand the content of the film.

In the Closed Captions inspector, choose options from the Language pop-up menu and the Country pop-up menu.

Tip: You must choose a language before you can choose a country.

If the timecode in the closed-caption file doesn’t properly correspond to the timecode in the source video, enter an amount in the Offset field.

In the batch area, select an alternative audio output row.

The Job inspector appears.

In the Job inspector, choose options from the Language pop-up menu and Country pop-up menu that correspond to the audio track.

Tip: You must choose a language before you can choose a country.

Tip: You can view subtitles and closed captions in the preview area by clicking the Show Closed Captions button . To learn more, see Preview jobs.

Add chapter markers to the feature video

iTunes Store videos must include chapters so that viewers can jump directly to specific sections of the movie. If your source video file already has chapter markers, those will be used. If your source video file does not have chapter markers, you can add them in Compressor.

In the batch area, select the Feature row item or Preview row item.

In the preview area, navigate to the frame where you want to begin the chapter.

Correct or augment an iTunes Store package

You can add or update components in a completed iTunes Store package. For example, if you want to add another subtitle file to a completed package, you can use Compressor to append the new file to the package. As long as the data in the package properties matches that in the original package, Compressor will automatically combine the items and ensure that the package is correctly configured and ready for uploading.

From the File menu, choose New iTunes Store Package.

An iTunes Store package is added to the batch area.

In the batch area, click the top bar of the iTunes Store Package item.

In the iTunes Store Package inspector (if the inspector is not visible, click the Inspector button ), enter a name and set the package properties to precisely match the values in the package you want to augment or change.

In the batch area, add the new or modified subtitle files, closed-caption files, or alternate audio files.

Note: If you create a package with no feature video, the preview area displays a missing media warning. Because you’re deliberately generating a package without video, this is not an error, so you can safely ignore this warning.

In the iTunes Store Package inspector, click Choose, then select the same location where the original package was saved.

At the bottom of the batch area, click the Start Batch button.

The existing package is updated to include the new or changed elements from the new batch.

Note: You cannot remove elements from a package after it has been created. If you want to remove an element from an existing package, you must create a new package from scratch. For example, if you created a package with French, German, and Italian subtitles, but want to modify the package to include only French and Italian subtitles, you must delete the old package from your disk, then build a new package with all desired elements included.